FBI raids Developers Shalom Lamm's properties in Bloomingburg

Friday

Mar 14, 2014 at 2:00 AM

BY STEVE ISRAEL and LEONARD SPARKS

BLOOMINGBURG — FBI agents swarmed this tiny village Thursday morning, raiding at least a dozen buildings owned by developer Shalom Lamm — including his offices — in an effort to learn if the more than 140 people registered to vote at those buildings actually live there.

The early morning raid, part of a larger investigation into corruption in the village, comes after opponents of Lamm's 396-home Hasidic development charged that he is trying to manipulate the March 18 village election.

Those opponents say that the people with addresses in Lamm's buildings don't live there. At least 100 of those registrations in this eastern Sullivan County village came after January 1.

"He is moving in anyone he can so they can register to vote and get who he wants elected, whether it's (Mayor Mark) Berentsen or a write-in," said Bloomingburg's Amanda Conboy recently. "It's voter fraud and it's happening right in front of our eyes."

She specifically mentioned one two-story building, 137 Main Street, where more than 20 people are registered to vote. FBI agents were seen walking in and out of the tan building Thursday morning, along with other buildings Lamm recently bought in this one-stoplight village of 400, such as the former Hickory Court senior housing complex.

"We're doing a search as part of an ongoing FBI investigation," said an FBI spokesman. But Lamm's lawyer, Joel Cohen, seemed to acknowledge the charges of voter fraud.

"The FBI is reviewing allegations — and they are only allegations. We feel confident when the dust settles they will find no wrongdoing."

Still, the presence of the FBI — after weeks of hushed-up interviews with many local residents — thrilled those who have battled Lamm and what they claim were the illegal approvals of his development, the Villages at Chestnut Ridge, which has been served with a stop-work order because of claims that the land it's on was illegally annexed from the Town of Mamakating.

"It's a great day in Bloomingburg; we're jumping for joy," said Teek Persaud, owner of the Quickway Diner, who noted that the agents were "all over the place," and still at Lamm's headquarters in the afternoon.

Opponents were particularly pleased to see FBI because they thought their allegations of corruption on the part of the village and Lamm were being ignored by state and local officials.

"This is the best day ever," said Nikki Latreille of Scotchtown, wearing a green jacket with the logo of the development opposition group, the Rural Community Coalition. "Nobody has been listening to us. We have done so much to just bring attention to this and nobody listened. I never expected the FBI, ever. I'm speechless. I'm going to cry."

The raids came during a week when development opponents turned up the heat on the election that could determine the future of Bloomingburg. They challenged about 225 registrations — 142 earlier in the week, and 83 on Thursday.

Lamm, who had challenged the nominating petitions of the opposition Rural Heritage Party and its mayoral candidate, Frank Gerardi, on Monday appealed the decision that dismissed the challenge.

This leaves the Sullivan County Board of Elections in a bind with only a few business days before the Tuesday election that is sure to attract more voters than the 23 in the last mayoral election. If the board doesn't settle the challenges, it must tell the poll workers how to handle those voters.